Michael Cox (2 November 1689 – 28 May 1779) was an Anglican archbishop in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

during the 18th century. He is now chiefly remembered for building one of Ireland's most magnificent remaining mansions, Castletown Cox, near

Carrick-on-Suir Carrick-on-Suir () is a town in County Tipperary, Ireland. It lies on both banks of the River Suir. The part on the north bank of the Suir lies in the civil parish of "Carrick", in the historical barony of Iffa and Offa East. The part on the s ...

. A younger son of Sir Richard Cox, 1st Baronet, Lord Chancellor of Ireland from 1703 to 1707, and his wife Mary Bourne, he was born in Cork. He was educated at

Kilkenny College Kilkenny College is an independent Church of Ireland co-educational day and boarding secondary school located in Kilkenny, in the South-East of Ireland. It is the largest co-educational boarding school in Ireland. The school's students are mainly ...

and Christ Church, Oxford and

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

in 1713. He became Chaplain to

Charles Butler, 1st Earl of Arran Lieutenant-General Charles Butler, 1st Earl of Arran (of the second creation), ''de jure'' 3rd Duke of Ormonde (1671–1758) was an Anglo-Irish peer. His uncle Richard was the 1st Earl of Arran of the first creation. The titles were re-creat ...

, then

Rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

Calan Calan may refer to * Calan (band), a Welsh band * Calan, Morbihan, a town in Brittany, France * Calan, a trade name for the drug Verapamil * Călan Călan (; ; ) is a town in Hunedoara County, Romania. Twelve villages are administered by th ...

and Chancellor of Kilkenny. In 1743 he became

Bishop of Ossory The Bishop of Ossory () is an episcopal title which takes its name after the ancient of Kingdom of Ossory in the Province of Leinster, Ireland. In the Roman Catholic Church it remains a separate title, but in the Church of Ireland it has been ...

; and in 1754,

Archbishop of Cashel The Archbishop of Cashel ( ga, Ard-Easpag Chaiseal Mumhan) was an archiepiscopal title which took its name after the town of Cashel, County Tipperary in Ireland. Following the Reformation, there had been parallel apostolic successions to the titl ...

. He was married (possibly a second marriage) in 1744 to Anne O'Brien, daughter of James O'Brien (1695-1771) and his wife Mary Jephson, and granddaughter of

William O'Brien, 3rd Earl of Inchiquin William MacWilliam O'Brien, 8th Baron of Inchiquin, 3rd Baron O'Brien of Burren, 3rd Earl of Inchiquin PC (1662 – 24 December 1719) was an Irish nobleman. Life William O'Brien was the son of William O'Brien, 2nd Earl of Inchiquin and Lady M ...

and his wife Mary Villiers. She died the following January, aged 22, giving birth to their only son. The marriage though short-lived is said to have been happy, and he did not remarry.Hawkins, Richard "Cox, Michael" ''Cambridge Dictionary of Irish Biography ''2009 He spent his last years building a magnificent mansion, Castletown Cox, in south County Kilkenny. Designed by the

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

n-born architect

Davis Ducart Davis Ducart (active from c. 1761, died 1780/81), was an architect and engineer in Ireland in the 1760s and 1770s. He designed several large buildings and engineering projects. He had associations with the canal builders of the time and the mining ...

, it was completed in 1776. It still exists and was extensively restored in the early 2000s by its then owner George Magan, Baron Magan of Castletown."Tory Peer handed £505k Rent Bill" Evening Standard 26 November 2018 The Archbishop died in 1779, aged ninety, and was buried beside his wife in St. Canice's Cathedral.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cox, Michael 1689 births 1779 deaths Clergy from Cork (city) People educated at Kilkenny College Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford 18th-century Anglican bishops in Ireland Anglican bishops of Ossory Anglican archbishops of Cashel Members of the Irish House of Lords Younger sons of baronets Irish Anglican archbishops